BOOK? How to harmonize on guitar using 3rds and 6ths

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Sometimes I deal with printed material a lot better than watching videos.

Does anybody know of a book, or a book that has a comprehensive section covering how to harmonize a melody or solo on guitar using double-stop 3rds and 6ths?

Something having good guitar neck diagrams, as well as notation and starting the root scale on as many strings as possible.

I'd like to see harmony below and above the root scale, in major, minor and at least mixolydian.

Thank you

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

I doubt that you will find a book that limits the focus of harmonic theory to the major scale in 3rds and 6ths. You’ll probably have better luck finding that in a chapter of a more comprehensive book.

I found this Guitar World online magazine article that is very limited, more like an introduction for what you seek
https://www.guitarworld.com/lessons/harmonizing-a-melody-with-major-and-minor-thirds

I’m sure you can find something similar dealing with 6ths. Playing 6ths involves a different technique because the strings with that interval will not be adjacent, as they are with 3rds.

Bill McCloskey · From: Nanuet, NY

You want this for guitar or pedal steel? Casey Saulpaugh has a book for E9 pedal steel on harmonized scales.

But the real question is: why not just map it out yourself?
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Fred Treece · From: California, USA

Curiosity got the best of me and Mister Google did not disappoint.
Here it is, guitar fretboard charts of harmonized major scale in 3rds and 6ths, all 6 strings.
https://acousticplayer.wordpress.com/fretboard-knowledge/doublestops-3rds-and-6ths/

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

Doesn’t MuseScore have automatic notation when you enter tab? With those basic fretboard charts, you can tab harmonized scales out in every key and every mode, just copying, pasting, and editing the key.

I feel your pain. I searched a long time for the guitar theory/instruction book that had everything I wanted in it. It doesn’t exist! But I found most of what I wanted scattered around amongst books and videos full of other stuff I have never used, so that was the process - and a shelf full of largely unused books is a testament.

Nowadays it is possible to collect what you’re looking for online, publish it all for yourself. You never even have to print it. And you will never go anywhere or do anything else or eat or sleep!

So you are doing the process, just keep up the collecting and storing and labeling. Sorry about your hand; that does put a crimp in production. Get well soon.

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Bill McCloskey · From: Nanuet, NY

MS Paint might be more work than it is worth. I just use Google Sheets to map the fret board. Here is a harmonized scale I just did in google sheets. Takes less than a minute.

_________________
Check out the Steel Guitar Union Hall Youtube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@steelguitarunionhall

John Larson · From: Pennsyltucky, USA

I'll try to explain this the way I learned the theory from playing and studying leads from a lot of my favorite melodic metal bands.

A minor above third would be three frets up so if you have a lick that's on say the A string and starts on fret 7 you would play the minor third above harmony starting on the 10th fret on the d string (or the Now to get the harmony to sound right in the scale depending on what notes in the scale this lead is being played on you may have to alter one of the notes in the melody or lead idea by a half step so the notes are still within the scale.
This is esepcially true if your are playing around on the major second and perfect 4th thirds harmony on a minor scale.

A good example of this kind of idea is the intro to Iron Maiden's "Aces High." The last bar has a run of harmonized fifths but the main idea is a harmonized thirds idea.

6ths would just be same idea in reverse 4 frets down from the root (or 3 frets up one string higher, or 4 frets if it's the g to b strings).

The end of Metallica's "One" has a really clear example of this.

Now if you want it super metal sounding and "evil" harmonize in 4ths, that's what Slayer does in songs like "Raining Blood" and "South of Heaven" It has the super medieval sounding slight dissonance to it.
(Play the same lead idea one string up, same fret)

I wish there was a book on this but I've never found one if there is it's probably in Swedish, cause the Swedish melodic death metal bands took the Iron Maiden harmonized lead guitar idea and ran with it.

Best advice is study songs you like that have this kind of playing and break apart what makes them work. There's lots of classic southern rock with this kind of idea (Skynyrd, Outlaws, Allman Brothers). It's the plus of having two lead guitarists.

One of the best songs to ever do this.
Thin Lizzy - "The Boys are Back in Town."
https://youtu.be/nN120kCiVyQ?si=iIQbB1_-yCZ1hP6K
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Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous; praise is meet for the upright. Give praise to the Lord with the harp, chant unto Him with the ten-stringed psaltery. Sing unto Him a new song, chant well unto Him with jubilation. For the word of the Lord is true, and all His works are in faithfulness. The Lord loveth mercy and judgement; the earth is full of the mercy of the Lord.
- Psalm 33:1-5

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Bill McCloskey · From: Nanuet, NY

Actually, I do center those numbers in my spreadsheets, but that one was just for example's sake. Smile

Google sheet is great because:

1. It is free.

2. You can access your files from any computer anywhere. You don't need a special program to run it.

I create massive amounts of these sheets for the pedal steel, with every combination of pedal and lever, all the chords in every combination. Helps me a lot.
_________________
Check out the Steel Guitar Union Hall Youtube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@steelguitarunionhall

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

I’m with John. The fretboard map is good for learning where the notes are, but for learning a song or lick note-for-note, it doesn’t get any clearer than notated tab. At least, for me.

An interactive map is great for pedal steel, so you can see where the notes and chords are when a pedal or lever is engaged

I think Guitar Pro (tab software) is still free, as is John Sohn’s Steel Sidekick, which could easily be used for standard guitar. There’s another one called Guitar Map, not sure of it’s availability anymore though.

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Ignore double post. Stoopid cast, splint, brace ... thing. Mad

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

Sorry, not Guitar Pro. I meant Power Tab. It was a simple free program. I just looked and the download links are dead ends.

John Larson · From: Pennsyltucky, USA

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA

Some updates:

1. I checked the MuseScore and it does do both notation AND guitar tab as well as a number of very interesting stuff with chords. I will have to dig deeper into this program.

I changed my goggle search parameters and found some stuff.

1. It turns out that Mel Bay DID put out a book, called, "The Double-Stop Guide A Whole Music Approach for Guitar". There are 2 problems with it. It is out of print and almost ALL(!) of the reviews I read say it is only 38 pages and isn't/wasn't very good. If I can find it used for under $5 I'll buy it and see what's up.

2. I found another book, "Red Hot Country Guitar (Guitar Signature Licks)". The reviews I found on this on ALL say that this one isn't all that good either, but it has an "EXCELLENT" section on double stops. I don't care anything about licks ... but the reviews of the double stops all sound encouraging. I found a used one under $5 ... so I bought it.

3. I did find a couple interesting articles on the internet.

"How To Play Guitar Double Stops" https://hub.yamaha.com/guitars/g-how-to/how-to-play-guitar-double-stops/

"Guitar Double Stops: What they are and how to play them" https://appliedguitartheory.com/lessons/guitar-double-stops/

These articles do have more of the diagrams that I am looking for to flesh out the reference "book" I am trying to put together.

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

Seeing the charts on paper or the video of a player demonstrating with tab is great, but it oftentimes leaves out the technique required to play double stops smoothly. How and when to change string pairs (from 4&3 to 3&2, for example), which fingers to use for fretting and picking - this is all left to the student to figure out unless you have a very patient teacher.

Albert Lee once described his technique as not so much concern with playing through scales as it was playing through chord fragments. Even when it sounds like he’s playing a speedy stream of double stops, it is in fact double stops broken up with single notes along the way, either on a 3rd string of what could be called a triad, or an open string, a muted string, or a change of fretboard position on one of the same strings.

The only player I know of that could play a seemingly endless stream of double stops (and sometimes triple stops) is Scotty Anderson. If you’ve never heard him, prepare to have your mind completely blown.

Mel Bay books are as much about learning to read music as they are about learning anything about guitar. There is almost no technique in them. I think that system is meant to be used with a teacher, at least through the first couple volumes.

Good topic.

Ted Duncan · From: Georgia, USA